Friday, March 22, 2013 10:51 pm

Police checking report of armed man on AZ campus

The Associated Press

Police were searching a building on the University of Arizona campus floor-by-floor Friday night after receiving a report of a man with a gun.

Authorities and school officials said there was no immediate sign of a gunman and no report of any shots fired.

Campus police spokesman Sgt. Juan Alvarez said it was too early to say the report was a hoax and "we are still treating it as a viable threat.

He said campus police received a 911 call about a man with a rifle at the Administration Building, and numerous officers responded. A text alert was sent to students and staff about the situation, instructing them to stay away from the area.

The Administration Building and some surrounding buildings near the campus's central mall were evacuated. Streets leading to the Administration Building were blocked, and dozens of police officers - some wearing helmets and armored vests and others armed with assault weapons - were seen on campus with a helicopter hovering overhead.

Alvarez said police were "doing a floor-by-floor search to make sure there is no threat."

"Can't say how long it will take. We are going to be thorough," he said.

A shooting at the University of Arizona's nursing school in October 2002 left three professors dead before the gunman killed himself.